Organised crime groups are suspected of operating through as many as half of convenience stores and vape retailers in some parts of the UK, a new report from Trading Standards has revealed.
Scale of the problem across the high street
The report, titled Hidden In Plain Sight, also estimates that up to a third of American candy stores and a quarter of fast-food takeaways in specific areas may be fronts for illicit activity. A survey conducted by Trading Standards found that 97 per cent of its officers are aware of suspected criminal operations within retail premises on their local high streets. There is “almost universal recognition” – from 99 per cent of officers – that there has been a significant rise in cash-intensive businesses opening since 2020. Such businesses are attractive to criminals for money laundering because their high cash flow allows illicit earnings to be disguised as legitimate takings.
Trading Standards has published a map identifying streets full of so-called dodgy shops across the UK, alongside a list of ten towns and cities deemed hotspots for organised crime groups, with Birmingham, Liverpool, and London topping the list. The problem is not limited to convenience stores and vape shops. Cash-intensive businesses such as barber shops, nail salons, and car washes are frequently cited as being exploited for money laundering and other criminal activities. The Independent British Vape Trade Association has noted that criminals view illicit vapes as a commodity similar to illicit tobacco or counterfeit goods, damaging the public’s perception of legitimate vape businesses.
Commonly traded illicit goods include tobacco, alcohol, vaping products, and electrical items, often sold at prices far below those of legitimate retailers. The report warns that these shops bring with them associated criminality including anti-social behaviour, theft, violent crime, drug supply, modern slavery, and child sexual exploitation. The impact on legitimate businesses is severe: the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) reports that 85 per cent of retailers have seen an increase in illicit trading in their local area, and the cost of crime and security investment for convenience stores effectively adds an 11p “crime tax” to every transaction.
Impact on Trading Standards and enforcement staff
The scale of the problem has coincided with a severe weakening of the agencies meant to police it. Local Authority Trading Standards (LATS) services have faced budget cuts of up to 50 per cent over the past decade, leading to staffing levels being stripped to a minimum. Coupled with resource “challenges” for other key enforcement agencies including the police, these cuts have allowed the rapid spread of dodgy shops and the complex criminal networks that underpin them.
The human cost of this enforcement gap is stark. Nearly three-quarters (72 per cent) of Trading Standards professionals have reported experiencing intimidation or threats of violence while carrying out their duties. In one instance, an officer faced escalating threats from a Kurdish crime gang that forced her to sell her home.
John Herriman, chief executive of the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI), said: “It is clear from this research that serious and organised crime is endemic across the UK, and the threat posed by illegitimate high street businesses is having a significant impact on the work of Trading Standards, and our ability to protect consumers and maintain the level playing field for legitimate business. Local Authority Trading Standards services have faced damaging funding cuts of up to 50 per cent over the past decade, with key enforcement partners experiencing similar resourcing challenges.”
Proposed solutions and government response
The Hidden In Plain Sight report outlines a ten-point plan to “reclaim the UK’s high streets”. Key proposals include investing in Trading Standards, making the sale of illegal goods a trigger for licence review, and an additional £20 million to bolster Trading Standards resources for ports and borders. The CTSI is calling for £100 million in investment to provide “boots on the ground” to implement the plan. The ACS has previously warned that Trading Standards would need an additional £140 million and hundreds of enforcement officers to tackle the growing problem of illicit trade.
The government has already established a task force to strengthen high street enforcement, supported by £10 million annually for three years. That initiative has visited over 3,000 suspected premises and led to nearly 1,000 arrests since March 2025. Separately, Operation Machinize – a nationwide crackdown by the National Crime Agency (NCA) and police forces – targeted over 265 cash-intensive businesses suspected of money laundering and other criminal activities, freezing over £1 million in bank accounts, seizing £40,000 in cash, making 35 arrests, and shutting down ten shops.
Legislation is also being updated. The Crime and Policing Act 2026, which applies mainly to England and Wales, includes measures such as making assault against shopworkers a standalone crime and scrapping the £200 shoplifting threshold, as well as introducing tougher sanctions for those selling dangerous illicit goods.
Ed Woodall, chief executive of the Association of Convenience Stores, said: “Responsible convenience retailers are extremely frustrated with rogue traders operating with impunity in their local area. Eighty-five per cent of retailers asked in our 2026 Crime Survey said that illicit trading has increased in their local area – this cannot be allowed to continue. We have consistently called for Trading Standards to be given the resources they need to tackle the dangerous and growing illicit market blighting communities across the UK. Tens of millions of pounds need to be invested in local enforcement capacity to shut down these rogue traders and support the responsible retailers that are suffering as a result.”
